User Reviews
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 A king among consoles. |  4.8
0 comments |
by  Shane
from Dublin, , Ireland | Aug 29, 2007 |
THE GOOD:
- Amazing graphical capabilities.
- Blu-Ray advantage.
- More than a console.
- The PSStore
- Future prospects.
- It looks SEXY. ;D
THE BAD:
- Price tag.
- Current Game Lineup.
- File organisation.
- Access to XMB.
SUMMARY:
Where to start. I bought my PS3 almost 2 months ago at this stage, and with only 3 games, I haven't put it down.
The first thing that I noticed when I came home with my huge box and took it all out onto the middle of my Living room floor is how awesome this console looks and feels. When you pick it up you can feel that you have an expensive and sturdy piece of equipment in your hands.
The graphics on the PS3 are simply amazing. And all I can think of is how the PS3 is using, at most, with it's current games, about 20 to 30% of it's potential power. With games like Motorstorm and Folklore accounting for only 20 or 30% of what the PS3 is capable of, it boggles the mind to think about how it's possible to make a game that looks almost 5 times better than either of those games.
The main reason the PS3 can run all of these amazing looking games is not entirely down to the system though. Sony's Blu Ray technology has a lot to do with it. The Blu Ray is the next generation of disk. It can store up to 25 gigabytes of data on a single layer disk. Previously, DVD's could only hold around 9 gigabytes. Without the Blu Ray technology, it would almost certainly mean that the PS3 wouldn't be able to store the data to make these games look so amazing without leading onto multiple disks for every game.
My favourite thing about the Ps3 is how it isn't just a simple games console. It's so much more. The ability to play Blu Ray movie disks, DVD movie disks, Playstation 2 games, Playstation games, the ability to stream music, videos and pictures through your PC with the right connection, it's online capabilities. Not to forget that in the near future we will be able to record TV through our PS3's and even stream TV from the PS3 to the PSP. It's an amazing piece of technology that just seems to get better and better every day.
The PS Store is just so much fun. It hasn't got the flashiest layout around, but it's the content that matters. Being able to download videos of your favourite upcoming titles to your Hard Drive. Not only games, but movies too. Bored? Why not take a trip down memory lane and download a classic game like Crash Bandicoot? At a fraction of the cost it used to be, I might add. How's €3 for you? ;D
The Store is updated constantly with new demos, games and classics. It just keeps getting better and better with the prospect of entire games being up for grabs on the Store, like Warhawk, which will be available on the PS Store almost a month before it's available on the shelves of any of your local games stores.
The future is looking bright for the Playstatoion 3. With games such as Grand Theft Auto IV, Metal Gear Solid 4, Heavenly Sword, hailed as one of, if not the greatest looking game ever made - Killzone 2, Warhawk - also being hailed as the best online game ever to grace any console, LittleBigPlanet, Alone In The Dark, Resident Evil 5, SKATE, LAIR. The list could go on forever.
Compared to the Good, the bad points of the PS3 are minuscule. The only thing I've heard people have major gripes about is the price. When you take a step back though, $500/€600, isn't a hefty sum to pay for such a behemoth of a console. I know children's parents will look at it and say 'I'm not paying that much for a games machine', as that is exactly what my parents said. When you take into account that a Blu Ray player alone is almost a thousand dollars to buy, the Ps3 suddenly seems cheap for all of the amazing functions it provides.
The game lineup at the moment isn't the most impressive I've ever seen either. It's got all of it's big-hitter, console selling games coming out late '07 and early to mid '08. Once they touch down though, the Playstation 3 is going to run away with the competition.
The only other tiny problems I could come up with could, and most likely will be fixed with future updates to the Cross Media Bar, and those are how the files are organised when they are downloaded. It would be nice to have them organised more efficiently. It would also be great if we could access the Cross Media Bar while playing a game without having to quit our current game to go back to the PS3's dashboard.
So I hope you found this review helpful. My advice would be to get yourself a PS3 if you're seriously into gaming. It'll be the best thing you've ever done in your gaming life. ;D
~Shane |
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| The Future is Here. |  5.0
0 comments |
by  Mnmfan
from Athlone, , Ireland | Jul 2, 2007 |
This is going to be a hard review to write. One incorrect piece of information and I could face being flamed in the Comments.
Anyway lets begin.
First of all let me say that yes I probably am a fanboy. That's not a bad thing though. I've owned all Playstations since the beginning. Including the PSP. Being a fan of Sonys consoles is nothing to be ashamed of. What does being a fan mean? Well it means that through thick and thin I will always stick by the Playstation. I have tried the Xbox and Wii and both just don't appeal to me at all. Let me explain it differently. I'm also a fan of Eminem, did I stop liking him when he cancelled his Ireland tour? No. Did I stop liking him when he started to use his daughter to attack his ex-wife in his songs like in the Song Kim? No. He's a genius in what he does and thus doing a few bad things is not enough for me to stop buying his music. Everyone makes mistakes.
Well the same is true for Playstation. The launch titles might have been pretty poor and the price was a bit steep but that's okay as the console is just starting out, give it a chance. (more on the price in a minute)
The PS3 is the most advanced game console on the market. That's not an opinion it's a fact.
It got off to a rocky start thanks to the public not getting enough information on why it's expensive and thanks to the bad launch titles and lack of exclusives. Give it a chance though, the PS2 launched with some bad titles too like Bouncer and Fantavision yet that turned out okay in the end.
For those not in the know, this is why it is so expensive compared to the 360:
First of all there's Blu-Ray. Not much of the public even know what Blu-ray is. Well let me try to explain it in simple terms.
Blu-Ray is a new type of disc that the PS3 uses for it's games and movies. It takes it's name from the blue-violet laser it uses to read and write data. The violet laser operates at a wavelength that is much shorter than that of the common red lasers which are used in DVDs. This enables the the disc to store a lot more. A common DVD disc stores 5GB of data, a HDDVD (that's what the 360 uses) can hold almost 30GB but a Blu-Ray disc can store over 50GB of data, in a while that will be doubled to 100GB with the release of Dual Layer Blu-ray disc. Sounds fancy but what does it mean for us??
Well it means that games on the PS3 have the potential to be 3 times larger then games on the 360. 3 times more textures, 3 times more physics, 3 times better AI etc etc.
There's more to Blu-ray then just it's capacity though. Blu-ray is a HD Disc and can play at the maximum 1080p resolution. Meaning it's 5 times sharper then DVDs when played on a HDTV. It really does make a difference. The graphics on any PS3 game or film looks great on a regular tv but play the same game or film on a HDTV and the difference is mind-boggling.
And there's more to Blue-ray. The disc uses Java Software. This makes it's interactivity during films a lot better. It enables you to read biographies on the actors while the film is still playing. You can pop up the menu while watching the film and have a look at how an effect was done before resuming the film. You can even change how the disc is played. Maybe you'd rather a short explanation of how a stunt was done during the film, well you can program that extra feature to play at a certain time during the film. The possibilities are endless.
I was in town today and spotted a Blu-Ray Player going for 1500 Euros. All it does is play Movies, nothing else. The PS3 has one built in for half that price.
What else makes the PS3 stand head and shoulders above the rest? Well there's the 60GB of memory it has.
Gone are the days of losing your important game saves down the back of the sofa. Every game save is saved on the PS3 itself. But don't worry, that doesn't mean that you can't bring a game save over to your friends house. The PS3 accepts a wide range of memory sticks and memory cards. Just stick a memory stick or memory card (the one you use for your Digital Camera will work fine as will the PSPs memory card) into the PS3, transfer your save onto it and bring it your friends house. Easy.
That's not all the 60GB is good for though. Yes, there's more.
Some large games like Oblivion and probably the soon to be released GTA4 use the space to save chunks of the game onto your hard disc. This means the PS3 won't have to load as much from the game disc during play. This leads to loading times at a fraction of what they would otherwise be. In GTA4 there will be no loading times AT ALL during gameplay apart from the initial load on startup. Even that will be rather short because part of the game is already loaded into the memory.
Some worry that doing that might fill the 60GB of space pretty quick. Well Oblivion caches about 4MB onto your hard disc. That's just a fraction of the space.
Not to mention you can install a larger hard drive if you want more space. This is not some back alley illegal operation either. In the manual that comes with the PS3 it explains step by step how to install a larger hard disc. So there's no excuse.
So what else does the PS3 have going for it??
The Cell, that's what.
The Cell is the brains and brawn of the PS3. It's the chip that provides the power and speed.
It's 40 times more powerfull then the processor in the PS2.
Normal PCs and the PS2 have 1 processor maybe 2. This means that most average PCs can only deal with one thing at a time. If you try doing 2 things the PC slows and lags and eventually freezes.
The Cell Chip however has not 2 but 8 processors. This means that the PS3 can cope with doing 8 things simultaneously.
So instead of 1 processor trying to handle everything that happens on screen all at once the PS3 has 8 working together. Each one concentrated on it's own given task.
Game developers have realised the potential of this immense power.
Let me explain the possibilities of this:
Developers now use each of the 8 processors to handle individual tasks. For example in Resistance 1 processor was used for physics, 1 was used for Enemy AI, 1 was used for graphics etc etc. In the upcoming game GT5 one single processor was dedicated entirely to producing the Rain Drops as they fall on the windshield.
The games currently on sale in your local shop are just test subjects. They don't use the cell to it's full potential as the developers are new to the hardware and need time to get used to how best to program for the PS3.
This is just the beginning of the PS3s life. We have much to look forward to.
So what else is there??
Future Proof.
The PS3 has the advantage of growing with us. When you took the PS2 out of the box that's what you had for the next 5 years whether you like it or not. The PS2 is the same now as it was 5 years ago. Nothing added.
However when you start-up the PS3 for the first time and realise there's something about it that you don't like well don't worry. Chances are it will be fixed soon. For example, currently the PS3 does not have the ability to make a photo in your photos folder into a wallpaper so it's always there in the background. However within a month or so a new update will be released which alters your PS3 to allow it to make wallpapers of your favorite photos. Sony are always checking in on what consumers want for there PS3 and they are always creating a new update. Your PS3 will be a lot better in a years time then what it is now. Updates are also used to fix bugs or add security protocols for Internet Security. Getting the newest update couldn't be easier. You can download it for free of course from the Update Option on the Cross Media Bar on the PS3 or if your not connected to the internet then you can get the update at an Internet cafe by downloading it on to a USB Memory Stick then transfer it onto your PS3 or there is one more way to get the newest update. You can just buy or rent the newest game on the market. Games include the newest upgrade for you to install.
All these exciting new stuff got me sidetracked. I haven't even told you about the Cross Media Bar or what the PS3 can actually do.
So let me take it back a notch as I'm getting carried away.
The PS3 is a full purpose media device. It can store photos, music, video and downloaded games on it's hard disc. Currently I have about 100 songs, 70 pictures and about 40 videos (mostly gametrailers and porn) stored on my PS3.
There's more to it then that though. A recent update enables me to access all the content on my PS3 via my PSP. This means I can watch my videos, view photos or listen to the music on my PS3 from the comfort of the bathroom toilet.
The 60GB version of the PS3 also comes with WiFi. So if you have broadband at home you can connect to it without any wires. Of couse if you don't have wireless broadband you can still make use of those wires.
This is where the PS3 shines. Using the Internet is completely 100% free. You are not charged for your 40 Player deathmatch in Resistance. You can play games against anybody from around the world absolutely free.
The only thing you need to do is log on to The Playstation Network (or PSN for short) and create an account and user name. After that your free to do whatever you want. The PSN Shop is a place you can go to download free classic games like Tekken Dark Resurection, free trailers and upgrades. The only thing you might need to pay for is extra content. For example downloading new weapons, clothing, game modes, larger maps etc etc for a certain game.
The internet explorer on the PS3 is as good as the the one on most pcs. It can view almost all sites like Bebo and Youtube and future upgrades will probably enable it to view the whole internet with ease. Although you might want to hook up a keyboard for typing. Any USB keyboard and mouse will do.
I almost forgot to mention the controllers that the PS3 uses. They are wireless.
The battery lasts for about 60 hours gameplay but don't worry they are rechargeable. And you can keep playing while it's charging too. I have 2 controllers. I leave one charging while playing with the other. When one dies I just switch them around.
Sixaxis is a new feature on the controllers. By tilting the controller you can control your car in Motorstorm or shake of aliens in Resistance. It's a nice novelty although current games don't show it at it's full potential.
Finally are the Games.
It's been a bad start for the PS3 in terms of games with Fight Night, Motorstorm and Resistance the only games that stand out from the crowd however give it a few months and things will look a whole lot better.
October is the month to look forward to as that is when we'll see a lot of AAA games being released.
Games like GTA4, Metal Gear Solid 4, Home, Little Big Planet, Final Fantasy 13, Resident Evil 5, Stuntman 2, Lair, Army of Two and Mercenaries 2 are all games to look forward to in the upcoming months.
Summary:
Well what can I say, I'm exhausted after writing this long review. Personally (and I stress personally) I think the console war is over before it began. The PS3 is the future of gaming and I'm proud of being an owner of one.
Everyone has different preferences though so it's up to you what you choose.
As for the score...well bad launch line-up is not something that I can blame on the actual console so that shouldn't effect it's score. I honestly can't find anything bad enough about the console that warrants any score penalties. It's a perfect machine.
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| PS3 is Worth the Money |  4.0
0 comments |
by  tallteen86
from Pickering, ON, Canada | May 14, 2007 |
THE GOOD:
-Affordable Blu-Ray Player
-Free Online (which plays well from what I can tell)
-Great games coming out soon
-SIXAXIS
-Will last many years probably
-HOME looks to be great
-Remote play with your PSP
-Can change the internal HDD
-Visulizations are cool, and smooth
-Sleek black surface looks sexy
-Runs silent
-Save the World with Folding@Home
-Can Run Linux (YellowDog specifically developed for that purpose)
-Can handle up to 1080p
-25GB to 50GB space on a disk to work with, makes a huge difference with exclusive games
-60GB (currently) HDD (20GB discontinued a while ago)
-Blu-Ray format looks to win the war (near 3:1 outselling HD-DVD)
-Demos and videos are free (some videos offer choice between SD, HD, and 1080p HD)
-Wireless controller that charges via USB cable
-Supports Keyboards, Mice, and bluetooth
-Background Downloading
-Photo Effect slideshow is cool (more info below)THE BAD:
-Price (Sell a kidney to get it)
-Current game selection is limited
-No Playlists (as of yet) for music
-Currently cannot play custom music in-game
-Kinda Big, and you'll fear breaking it
-Attracts dust a lot
-Sometimes need to install game data on HDD
-Playstation Store selection is currently limited (should change in the coming months)
-Controller seems less...substantial versus The PS2 and 360 controllers
-No Rumble (as of yet, that may change in the future)
-Cannot check messages while playing a game (might be fixed in next/future update)
-File Organization leaves much to be desired SUMMARY:
Currently, it IS worth it, even if you only have a HD-TV (and no HD player), just for that alone, since its a cheap Blu-ray player...I recommend waiting if you don't care for the current game linup.
The 360 runs really loud when loading things up, and such...I havn't had any such issue with my PS3...
I have to say that the SIXAXIS is something that might have potential, but as of yet, but its a bit hit and miss...it can be good, or it can be annoying.
Oh, and about Visulizations, I also have a 360, and while it's visualizations are good, you can see the 'cube' thing its in most of the time.
And like less then 30 minutes after I opened it, it already had a layer of dust on it....
It would be nice to be able to check my messages, without having to log-out of a game...There is a rumor that the next update will fix this issue.
About the Photo effect slideshow....It renders all your images into 'photos', and randomly drops them on a virtual table (you proceed along the table, as images are rendered). It is very cool
File organization is worse then the PSP's. With music, you can sort by genre album, artist and all, but cannot make your own folders....But at least you can 'display all'...Photos has a similar issue...I have 900+ images under "MAY"...you can also sort by year, but that is pretty worthless...hopefully a future update will fix this..
And the controller issue isn't important, just something I felt I should say....its due to the absence of the weight of the the Rumble and such. |
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| PS3 - worth the hype? | 4.0
0 comments |
by  The Supreme Extreme
from , , | Feb 20, 2007 |
THE GOOD:
-Graphics - very sleek
-Free online play
-Looks awesome
-Wireless controller comes standard
-Easy to set up, no downloading or anything requiredTHE BAD:
-Joke of a game line-up at the moment
-Biggest size of console out there
-Expensive
-Old controller design (not exactly bad)
-Gets very hot
-Bad Marketing by Sony SUMMARY:
At the moment, the PS3 is getting destroyed in sales by the Wii and 360. The reason? Simple, the PS3 has a joke of a game line-up as of early 2007. Very bad marketing plan for Sony.
The PS3 is also huge and clunky, but at the same time very attractive.
The controllers are the exact same as PS2's, but wireless. Now, this can be good or bad, whichever way you look at it. The PS2 controllers were awesome, the best out there, but if you are the man that wants to see something new, then the controllers aren't for you.
Free online play is always welcoming.
It was also very easy to set up, it was as easy as just plugging it into my TV, putting the power in and I'm done. With the Wii I had to set up my account, learn the controllers, etc.
The one of just a couple flaws I could see is the PS3 got a lot hotter than my Wii. If you touch it at a certain part on the bottom of the case, you might get a minor burn if you have light skin. Other than that, walaa!
I believe the PS3 at the moment is underestimated and the game line-up should be revived by late 2007, and right there and then the PS3 will be the gaming leader just like the PS2.
-TSE |
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| The PS3.... Sony's Newest Masterpiece |  4.9
0 comments |
by  Rocketsfan95
from , , | Dec 23, 2006 |
THE GOOD:
The Good
Sony's newest console, the PlayStation 3, is definitely awesome.
To start off, I would like to say that Sony did an amazing job. Now, for our review. There are numerous things for the good in the 60/20 Gigabyte version of the PS3. In both versions, you have a web browser, the PlayStation Store, and Playstation Network. This helps you connect with the rest of the world. Aside from that, the 60 (or) 20 Gigabyte hardrive allows you to store music, videos, pictures, game saves, and much more! The system also uses PS3 Wireless Controllers, allowing you to stand as far away as you like, or as close as you like. And, this all helps to reduce wire tangles. The controllers also have Sixaxis, revolutionary technology that makes the controller's movements your game's movements. You may even hook up your old controllers for PS2 to this, with the adapter. and do not worry about those backward compatibility problems... Sony sends out updates to fix that, just download them, and more and more games are backward compatible. THE BAD:
The Bad
The bad isn't very much. For the Sixaxis Technology, you lose the rumble features in your controller. You also cannot be running a game while downloading system updates. And, of course, the price tag. Going at $600 USD for the 60 Gigabyte, and $500 USD for the 20 Gigabyte, it is an expensive system. SUMMARY:
Overall this system is the best. The price tag may lure you towards something else, but the game play, graphics, controls, and maker are better than any other.The wide variety of games will also be some of the largest. And, the best titles, such as Sonic The Hedgehog, NBA Live, Madden NFL '07, and many others will be mind-blowing in every dimension.
I own the 60 Gigabyte version, and I recommend the new Sony PlayStation 3 to anyone who wants to have a great gaming experience... wait, you don't even have to want to play games. You can use it to store data, and other things, as well as go on the internet. Are you ready for the PS3?
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| PS3, the only multimedia machine you need. | 5.0
0 comments |
by  Guticb
from Fort Worth, TX, USA | Dec 3, 2006 |
THE GOOD:
- Amazing graphics
- Free online play
- Wifi (In 60GB version)
- Looks sleek
- Great controller
- It's VERY quiet
- PS3 can be turned on and off with the controller
- Blu-ray movies
- GREAT multimedia machine
- Can run Linux
- Free demos, voice chat, online play, video chat, updates
- Fast internet browser
- Hasn't frozen yet, which is SUPPOSEDLY the biggest issue
- I haven't found any issues with backwards compatibility, other than what is now under the 'Bad' section.
- Both the 20GB and the 60GB system come with Bluetooth controllers!
- You can use bluetooth headsets, keyboards, remotes, and mice with the PS3.
- PS2 games no longer look pixelated, and now look just as they did on the PS2.THE BAD:
- Price tag ($499 for a 20GB and $599 for a 60GB at time of writing)
- Had some issues at first, but that was because I forgot my WEP key
- Gets dusty easily
- Pretty darn big (Still looks good though)
- Some developers are slacking off and not including much support for the motion sensitive controller SUMMARY:
So here's the big question... Is it worth the money?
I would say that, yes, it is.
The system looks and performs great, and has some great graphics, especially on an HDTV.
It also has a pretty darn big HD, so there's more than enough room to fit just about all you want. I've already transferred about 10 gigs of things from my computer to my PS3.
Another thing is, I've played a 40 player online game in Resistance: Fall of Man, and am VERY impressed. There was NO lag, the game ran smoothly, the graphics stayed consistent, load times stayed short, people had fun. 40 player online is something that even PC's have issues with at times, yet the PS3 did it as if it were nothing.
I've also got some comments about the Playstation store. I love how it has free demo downloads. As of me writing this, I have the demos of Motorstorm, Blast Factor, Formula 1, and Cash Guns Chaos. I've got to say... Motorstorm is absolutely amazing. I can't even describe how good it looked, sounded, performed, and how much fun the game actually was. YOu wouldn't believe the physics if you didn't play the game. It's just that good. Back on the topic of the Playstation store though, while you're downloading a demo, you can't multitask. You have to stay on the screen that it is downloading the demo off of. You can't play a game while it's downloading, you can't browse the web, or listen to music. You have to stay on the screen and wait.
Something that surprised me was that the PS3 is EXTREMELY powerful, but it stays a LOT quieter than a PS2. The loudest I have heard it get was just barely louder than a slimline PS2, which really amazed me. I also liked how you could turn off individual controllers, quit games, or even turn off the PS3 system by pressing the Playstation button on the PS3 controller. It is very convenient, and a helpful addition to the controller.
Added January 4th, 2007- Something I have recently come to realize is that the PS3 tends to Pixelate PS2 games when you're playing them. This basically makes circles and curves look jagged. This only occurs on some games though. It is VERY noticeable on Final Fantasy 10 though, and tends to irritate me to the point where I'd rather play it on the Playstation 2.
Edit: March 24th- FYI, that pixelation issue is GONE. It has been completely resolved. Also, it can now multitask while downloading, so I will remove that. |
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4.62/5.0
